Neon Genesis Evangelion

That looks weird even for that show.

Lawnmower man meets Third Impact.

... I'm just getting an endlessly repeating circle-thing that's probably supposed to mean "We're trying to load up this image/graphic".

"We don't have Third Impact in South Africa. I was keeping an eye on it."

Just catching up with the thread. With respect to Rei, Anno for some reason makes the intended robotic Uncanny Valley character a tragic abuse victim, and he's surprised when people empathize with her? I'm sorry, but that's on him.

Anno did try to make Rei into a mysterious character. .....

I did find the conversation about idealized fantasy versus harsh reality pretty interesting. I'm not sure it applies to Rei and Asuka, but I definitely see it in the TV vs. movie endings (which I believe happen at the same time) - TV ending is ideal fantasy, movie ending is harsh reality, and the position the series seems to take is that no matter how harsh reality is, even if it's being marooned in a ruined city (if not a ruined world) with nobody around but that girl who you're not sure if she wants to bone you or cut your throat with a rusty spatula, facing it is still better than hiding in fantasy. You mustn't run away.

As for whether Rei is a fantasy, while I agree she's a deconstruction of a particular kind of anime love interest, I don't see Asuka as "reality" so much as a swipe at a different kind of fantasy, namely the cute tsundere/Loving Bully who "TOTALLY DOESN'T LIKE YOU, BAKA." She's cut from the same cloth but has her "tsun" cranked up to "borderline abusive."

edited 22nd Jul '17 2:24:37 PM by HamburgerTime

So a bitch super tsundere.

I kid, well mostly. I mean I like Asuka but at some points I think calling her tsundere is too nice. She is thankfull far from the worse though.

An idea that's entered my mind recently is that both girls are Romantic False Leads, resembling classic love interest archetypes but actually just being truly, thoroughly screwed up. Who Shinji's "intended" love interest would be is, obviously, never seen, but it'd presumably be someone who could provide him with normalcy and stability.

Can't be Kaworu either. Gives him paradise and will always be taken away.

Kaworu's almost the biggest deconstruction of all - he seems too good to be true, and boy, is he ever. He's a Manic Pixie Dream Guy, except with the Pixie part replaced by Eldritch Abomination.

The Fair Folk can be pretty Eldritch especially in morality. Ao it still fits.

It'd also be Humanoid Abomination.

Saya No Uta ends up gender flipping this hard.

It's obviously Mana, in my opinion.

I also have to say, and apologies if I start a fight with this, that I really don't like it when people say Rei is Yui, especially to justify shipping; I feel that misses the point of her character, namely that she truly is more than just her DNA. To see her as just a replacement Yui is how Gendo, her abuser, sees her.

edited 23rd Jul '17 9:28:57 PM by HamburgerTime

Too bad Anno can't seem to see beyond how she appears to him symbolically.

Well she is her own person. Even then she's only half Yui. Biologically speaking, she's more like a step-daughter to Gendo, with the baby-daddy being a horrible eldritch abomination from beyond the stars.

And is everyones mom when the soul literally comes from her and her egg.

We're not sure if she's even that much Yui. From what I gathered, the genes governing physical appearance form a small fraction of one's genome. For all we know, Gendou only needs to have her with an even smaller fraction to establish a strong enough "link" that would guarantee him the resurrection of Yui.

Yeah, I agree with that wholeheartedly. What about her "becoming" Yui (or Yui 2.0, if you will), though? Like, one fanfic scenario that I had concocted diverges in the middle of EOE, in that Rei ultimately decides that neither Gendou nor Yui were/are fitting parents for Shinji (in this world, Yui is kinda nuts and quite abusive to Shinji on a subtle and emotional level through her scheme), and uses her Physical God power to put both in a tailor-made Ironic Hell, while she takes Shinji away to live a happy, peaceful life where Rei is his mother... and father... and younger sister... and older sister... and younger brother... and older brother... and cousins... and... well, you get the picture.

In unrelated news, I learned today there's an Eva video game where you can actually play as Lilith. Her base form in a fighting pose is a special kind of dorky-looking.

Please, that's not the best part; the best part is that fucking Gunbuster is an unlockable character.

Apparently, Anno was a key animator for the best episode of Cream Lemon, Pop Chaser. How cool is that?!

A question I've pondered on occasion: what became of Rei after Third Impact? Could she come back with the rest of humanity, or did she die when Lilith did?